Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has described Russian President Vladimir Putin as “patient zero,” accusing him of allowing war to spread beyond Ukraine and making the world increasingly dangerous.
Zelenskyy during his UN General Assembly address said “After all of this, can you even imagine him without war? He is patient zero. The one from whom this idea of war keeps spreading further.”
“And wherever it spreads, it brings only pain, instability, new risks, and of course new crisis. The more freedom Putin has to act, the more dangerous the world becomes for everyone else.”
Zelenskyy said Russia’s war in Ukraine had already extended beyond the battlefield through its cooperation with North Korea and its threats against other countries.
He said the Russian army had suffered 248,964 battlefield losses between January and August, describing the figure as people killed or badly wounded. “From January through August, the Russian army lost 248,964 people on the battlefield in Ukraine in eight months. 248,000 killed and badly wounded.”
Zelenskyy said Russia had captured just over 1,000 square kilometres of Ukrainian territory this year despite the losses, adding that Ukraine had already retaken a significant part of it.
“Russia is a country that already has 17 million square kilometres of its own land without any Ukrainian territory, by the way,” he said.
“So to add another 1,000 square kilometres, Putin is paying with 248 people for every kilometre.”
He also criticised North Korea’s involvement in the war, saying Pyongyang had sent troops to Russia and suffered heavy losses. “Why should Koreans give their lives in a war against Ukraine? Kim Jong-un uses them like currency, and he gets something in return.”
He said North Korea had gained improved military capabilities through its cooperation with Russia. “North Korean neighbours and countries across Asia have probably already noticed its improved ballistic missiles and Pyongyang’s much greater drone capabilities.”
Zelenskyy also referred to two North Korean prisoners recently sent by Ukraine to South Korea, saying their experience illustrated the conditions under which North Korean troops were trained. “These guys are not easy to capture alive. One of them, when he realised he was going to be taken prisoner, tried to kill himself, and he was shocked that fate didn’t let him die.”
“And this is how they raise people in the North. It’s reality. They take away their freedom. They take away their right to choose, and they drill into them that they must die, no matter what.”
Zelenskyy said Putin had repeatedly promised that Russia would seize Ukraine’s Donetsk region, but argued that such promises had repeatedly failed to materialise. “This is probably the 17th or 18th time in five years that he has made this promise. It’s always the same, just a few, a few more months. And then he moves, the deadline moves again. Putin will fail this time too.”
Zelenskyy said Russia’s ambitions went beyond Donetsk, pointing to other Ukrainian cities and countries outside Ukraine. “But after that, he will once again make it clear to the world that even our Donetsk region is not enough for him. He wants more of our cities, Odessa and Kharkiv, Dnipro and others.”
“Russia has claims against our neighbour, Moldova. It constantly threatens Poland and the Baltic states. Russia shows no respect for the statehood of the countries of the South Caucasus and Central Asia.”
He also referred to Russia’s activities in Syria and Africa, saying, “people in Syria and across Africa also know very well what Russian killers are.”
Zelenskyy argued that international pressure on Russia must focus on its ability to finance the war. “Russia’s finances and Russia’s production are what must be stopped if Putin is to be stopped.”
He said Ukraine’s military operations targeting Russia’s energy sector were aimed at reducing Moscow’s ability to sustain the war, rather than targeting oil for its own sake. “But oil itself is not Ukraine’s target, not our target, not gasoline or diesel, not factories or ports as such. Our target is Russia’s ability to finance this war, to drag it out, to make it more brutal and more destructive.”
Zelenskyy thanked countries supporting Ukraine through sanctions, military assistance and joint weapons production. “Sanctions, support packages, our joint weapon production, all of these matters, of course matters. All of this makes us stronger.”
He also criticised countries that continue trading with Russia, arguing that such economic activity helps extend the war. “When someone gives Russia more money through trade, they give this war more time.”
He said Russia’s use of its veto power at the United Nations also affected diplomatic efforts.
“When Russia has money, it always says no, no to diplomacy. And this is also a kind of veto on peace, not an official right, but real.”
Zelenskyy further warned against weakening sanctions on Russian oligarchs, saying this could indirectly give Russia more resources to sustain the war. “It may make life more comfortable for rich Russians. But it also gives the world more time, more time for Putin to send poor people into the kill zone. Russia’s revenues must remain a target.”
He added that Russia’s budget deficit was now higher than in any other year and claimed that most Russian regions were already bankrupt.
“Russia planned major operations on the front this summer. All of them failed.”
Erizia Rubyjeana
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